What is the impact of obesity on back pain?

• If you are overweight or obese, you may be grappling with back pain.
• This is a very common problem for heavy people.
• Carrying extra weight can increase your risk for developing several back disorders.

Pressure on the Spine

• Extra weight puts added pressure on the spine. This can cause pain.
• It has long been known that a rise in body weight results in a geometric increase in the pressure on the spine.
• For those who are morbidly obese, the injury to the spine is even greater.
• This is due to degenerative changes in the vertebral column.
• The pressure may increase your risk of herniated disk, degenerative disk disease and back strain.

Obesity and Herniated Disk

• The extra pressure weight puts on your spine can, over the time, cause wearing away of disks.
• The outer fibers of the disk are weared out and this increases your risk of an injury.
• Being obese may also prevent you from healing pain due to herniated disk-related sciatica.

Obesity and Osteoarthritis of the Spine

• There’s no doubt that obesity contributes to the development of osteoarthritis (OA) in the spine.
• Studies show that with weight loss, pain from OA subsides in many patients.
• Adults aren’t the only ones at risk.
• Obesity also affects the health of children’s joints.
• Encouraging your children to be active and achieve or maintain an appropriate body weight for their age and height may go a long way.
• This is helping them to avoid arthritis later in life.

Obesity and Back Pain Due to Lordosis

• A large belly may pull your pelvis forward.
• This will in turn increase the curve in your low back (lordosis).
• The increased lordosis will probably tighten up your back muscles and cause strain or pain.
• Keeping a healthy weight and strong abs can help you counter the effects of an exaggerated low back curve.

Obesity, Spondylolysis and Spondylolisthesis

• Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis are related conditions.
• Obesity can affect them both by increasing strain in the joint that normally keeps the spine in line.
• Obesity may pull the pelvis forward, which accentuates the low back curve.

Obesity and Diffuse Idiopathic Hyperostosis

• DISH, the hardening of one of the ligaments of the spine, is more common in elderly men than other types of people.
• This back condition has been linked to a high BMI.
• This is a measure that classifies one as obese. Researchers have also linked DISH with the presence of diabetes.

Obesity and Back Surgery

• The obesity rate in people who have back surgery is higher than in the general population.
• Complications from back surgery occur more frequently in obese patients.
• Having minimally invasive spine surgery may provide a safer option.
• It is less invasive than traditional back surgery.

Will Losing Weight Reduce My Back Pain?

• Along with controlling your risk for heart attack, diabetes, stroke and other degenerative diseases, losing weight can help you get rid of back pain.
• Every single person who loses a significant amount of weight finds that their back pain is also significantly improved.
• The reason for this is related to a decrease in the amount of work muscles need to do in order to accomplish everyday tasks with loss of weight.